For what it's worth, I'll say that I really hate the King videos, and find them to be some of the most worthless training devices I've seen. Years ago, I bought their spin video to show students, and it had some excellent footage at the beginning of an incipient spin entry,shot from the top of the vertical stabilizer. Just as the airplane rolled into the top of the funnel, the video stopped,and John King jumped in front of the camera. Nobody needed to see King, but the video was very important. He ruined it; the Kings videos are all about showing them teaching, and not at all about teaching. I really hate them.
Guppy,
First of all, thank you immensely for taking all that time to reply to my question post. I read every word and took it all in. I know that questions like what pencil to use are quite mundane and not exactly very stimulating, but to a student who doesn't know the answer is worth its weight.
As far as the King videos go, I, over the course of the course so to speak, developed a negative opinion of the system as well. Here's why:
1. I did not pay $365 to see advertising for the new Cessna 162 over and over and OVER again. This is supposed to be educational, not a damn commercial.
2. I did not pay $365 to see advertising for the Garmin G1000 over and over and OVER again.
3. I did not pay $365 to see advertising for DUAT, DUATS, and FLTPLAN.com over and over and OVER again.
4. In the videos, it is not necessary to act all cheery and smile constantly. No points are given out for being pleasant. If you are talking about the ultimate result of a spin on final, you are talking about a SERIOUS event, and one's tone should be therefore serious.
5. Everything works out just perfect every time, in every video. John: "Annnnnd look at that, my planning was so perfect that we're directly over the water tower" or "and look at that, we just happen to have ended up absolutely PERFECTLY on glide-slope after that maneuver, or "Wow, I just did that 360 so absolutely *perfectly* that I just passed through my own wake turbulence."
I understand that when teaching, one doesn't want to show the student the WRONG way, but let's be realistic when we teach. Show things not working out just perfectly sometimes, and show what has to be done to correct it. Flight students are not stupid people. They are smart enough to know when the wool is being pulled over their eyes. Be honest when working with them, yes even on video.
6. Martha has that awkward nervous laugh and a really bad hairdo.
What training system do you happen to like Gupp?